A lack of clearance between the engine cover and the speed control cable connector meant the throttle could get stick open when the accelerator was fully depressed. Following a petition from the Center for Auto Safety, NHTSA opened an investigation and eventually issued a recall to fix the sticky throttles in the 2001–2004 model years.
Even with the throttles fixed, the 2001 model year could still have trouble stopping due to multiple problems with leaking brakes.
10.0
really awful
Crashes / Fires:
2 / 6
Injuries / Deaths:
1 / 0
Average Mileage:
115,029 miles
About These NHTSA Complaints:
This data is from the NHTSA — the US gov't agency tasked with vehicle safety. Complaints are spread across multiple & redundant categories, & are not organized by problem.
So how do you find out what problems are occurring? For this NHTSA complaint data, the only way is to read through the comments below. Any duplicates or errors? It's not us.
While driving down the highway going 60 mph, my car started shaking almost uncontrollably, making a loud noise like the mmuffler was falling off. I pulled off the road, shut the car off. Open the hood to find the coil laying on the motor and the spark plug no where to be found. Called a friend who's a mechanic, he went N got a new spark plug, put it in and the car drove fine for about 5 weeks. Because yesterday coming off the parkway the car started smelling like gasoline inside and making noise like the muffler came off.so I pulled into a walmart parking lot only to find that it happened once again... the spark plug has blown out of the engine twice now in the last month and a half. Now the spark plug will not go back in. When we went to get another spark plug the man at the parts store said thus is a common problem with Ford. That is not exceptable!! I have to lose a day of work to take it to a mechanics shop. My daughters and grandchildren were in the car. If this is a common problem you need to fix it before someone gets hurt
My 2001 Ford Escape will not shift into 1st or 2nd gear without running hard and ticking once I get set past 3rd gear it will run okay I put it in park and it will not stay and park it rolls so I have to put a brick under the wheels I received a recall letter but I have misplaced it due to an accident I had everything was placed and boxes and stuff and I cannot find it if somebody can please contact me back about this problem so I can get it fixed and start driving my Escape again it shifts hard it clunks and it will not stay in the parking spot it's still rolls I have a brick underneath it so it doesn't roll and hit somebody else if somebody could contact me on this place thank you.
The contact owned a 2001 Ford Escape. While the vehicle was parked, the engine compartment caught fire. The fire department extinguished the fire. A police report was not filed. The vehicle was unoccupied and was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was destroyed. The local dealer was not contacted and the manufacturer was not notified. The VIN was included in NHTSA campaign:07V156000 (service brakes, hydraulic) and :12V005000 (service brakes, hydraulic). The failure mileage was approximately 100,000.
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Escape. While driving between 5-10 mph, the throttle became stuck when the accelerator pedal was fully depressed. The vehicle was inspected by an independent mechanic. The contact was informed that the differential pressure feedback egr (dpfe) sensor needed to be replaced. The vehicle was included in NHTSA campaign number: 12V353000 (engine and engine cooling, vehicle speed control). The vehicle was repaired; however, the failure recurred. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 190,000.
- Wilseyville, CA, USA
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Despite numerous calls to Ford, I still receive recall notices on this vehicle, however it was a cash for clunkers vehicle. I participated in this program and the vehicle was permanently disabled back in 2009/2010.
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Escape. While accelerating from a stop light, the vehicle shook, stalled, and all the lights on the instrument panel illuminated. The vehicle was restarted, but the failure recurred twice. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The VIN was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 04V175000 (power train). The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 115,000. Updated 09/08/16
While driving down the express way the car engine was stuck accelerating until it threw a rod and the engine quit after that. Was driving 60 until the car started accelerating
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Escape. While parked, the vehicle failed to move when the gear stick was shifted from park to drive. The failure occurred constantly. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was diagnosed that the transmission failed and needed to be replaced. In addition, the contact mentioned that the check engine light illuminated. It was detected that oil was leaking onto the exhaust manifold. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 267,000.
The contact owned a 2001 Ford Escape. The contact received notification of NHTSA campaign number; 12V353000 (engine and engine cooling, vehicle speed control). While driving approximately 35 mph, the brake pedal was depressed however, the vehicle failed to accelerate causing the vehicle to crash into a commercial vehicle. The vehicle was destroyed. A police report was filed and there were no injuries. The vehicle was towed to an independent mechanic where it was not diagnosed. The manufacturer was not notified of the failure. The approximate failure mileage was 125,000.
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Escape. While driving at 45 mph, the vehicle unexpectedly decelerated and the battery light illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle stalled and was able to be restarted after several attempts. The contact was able to drive for approximately five more minutes before the vehicle stalled again. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 122,000.
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Escape. The contact stated that whenever it rained or snowed, the vehicle would stutter and fail to accelerate over 20 mph. The vehicle was taken to the dealer where the technician diagnosed that the coil pack needed to be replaced. The vehicle was repaired numerous times. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The failure mileage was 105,000.
My son was going down the road about 60 miles an hour when a big deer came out in front of him. He jammed on his brakes skidding but still hit the deer totaling the car. Not one of the airbags came out. He went forward hitting his upper body and face on the steering wheel. He had his seat belt on. The police were called to the accident. He was taken to the hospital by friends. He turned black and blue and still is hurting. The car was just inspected the end of October. I feel Ford and the manufacturer should be held liable. That the car should be replaced because of the airbags not working causing injury. I'm without a car...updated 12/04/14 updated 06/2/2015
Here recently I have had several occurrences of my 2001 Escape stalling while driving. On 2 occasions I was approaching a stop light, slightly uphill and when I pressed the brake the car completely shut off losing all power and steering and I had to "stand" on the brakes to stop. A few other times it happened while I was turning a corner as well as going through a stop light turning right or left, not going fast at all. Pretty scary stuff. I have had no problem starting it back up after the occurrences, however it keeps happening.
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while driving 65 mph, the vehicle made a loud noise and black smoke started to emit from the rear end of the vehicle. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic. The technician diagnosed that the engine was defective and needed to be replaced. The manufacturer was made aware of the failure. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was unknown.
We were driving around a curve and onto a straight part of the road about 40-43 mph and the engine just cut off. We were able to coast over to the side of the road and stop. The steering and brakes had no power. We tried starting the engine and it cranked but acted like it was not getting any fuel (there was half a tank). We left to get a ride and when we returned to tow the car it started right up and has been driving fine since. We are afraid to drive it now because if we had been in traffic we would have been in an accident.
The contact owns a 2001 Ford Escape. The contact stated that while traveling various speeds, a fire started in the engine compartment. A police report was filed. The vehicle was destroyed. The vehicle was not diagnosed to determine the cause of the fire. The manufacturer was contacted about the failure. The failure mileage and VIN was not available. Updated 06/24/14 the consumer stated while driving approximately 65mph, a low pop was heard. Black smoke rolled into the interior of the vehicle. The vehicle was totaled. Updated 06/25/2014
A D V E R T I S E M E N T S
- Alameda, CA, USA